GWTW - Promotional Perfume - Babs - Original - WWII Vintage

Description: GWTW there were numerous promotional tie-ins produced to coincide with the 1939 premier release of the GWTW movie. One of the truly fun parts of collecting is digging into the history of some of the collectibles you find - and learning the story behind them. This small little item has a large, interesting, history. In 1939 (when the GWTW movie was released) a company named Bab's Creations, Inc, was also established in New York City. And their first product was this Forever Yours perfume - whose bottle was shaped in a "Scarlett-like" figure, under a glass globe. In it's original release, the bottle and globe sat together on a pressed metal, brass-colored base. Fair enough. Most of the Bab's GWTW / Forever Yours perfume bottles you will see for sale are of this vintage. The GWTW movie was still enjoying a LOT of popularity for the next few years - well into the United States' entry into World War II in 1941. With the introduction of WWII in the US also came a number of other impacts on US lifestyle. One was that all metals (especially brass) came under very high demand - and priority - for use by the US Government for the production of ammunition, bombs, ships, jeeps, airplanes, etc. "Metal drives" were conducted back then to collect scrap metal from citizens for war usage. We have all seen that pennies produced in 1943 were made of steel, instead of copper - for this very reason. Another impact of WWII was rationing and government dictated price controls. Everyone was required to ration their usage of popular commodities like food and gasoline. And price controls were put in place to prevent price gouging by manufacturers. OK. Well, all of the above find themselves reflected in this little bottle of Bab's GWTW Perfume. First you will notice that the base - that had been originally made of brass, is now made of what looks to me like pressed wood - some early form of sawdust and glue molded into the base form. Manufactured this way to accommodate the metal shortage of the time. Additionally, you will see the tag on the bottom of the base that reads "Retail Ceiling Price $1.00". This meant that, in accord with price controls in effect then, this item could not be sold for more than $1.00. Based on the history, I would suggest that this bottle was manufactured in 1943 or 1944. Bab's Creations went out of business in 1945. I find all of this very interesting - and thought I would share it with you. The globe for this bottle is in very good condition. The bottle and base are as well. The bouquet of flowers that Scarlett is holding has turned brown. And there is some fading to the ribbon that she wears around her waist. The tag / sticker on the front of the base reads: "FOREVER YOURS PERFUME 1 OUNCE - DISTRIBUTED BY BAB'S CREATIONS" This item is approximately 5.5 inches high, and approximately 3.5 inches wide at the base. I have attached a picture of a vintage advertisement for the Bab's perfume - from back in the day. I will include a photocopy of this advertisement with the purchase of this item. Please review the pictures attached - and feel free to contact me with any questions. Please scroll down to the link to visit my Gone with the Wind Collectibles store on ebay. Thank you for your time and interest.

Price: 29 USD

Location: Anderson, South Carolina

End Time: 2024-11-08T20:24:31.000Z

Shipping Cost: 7.5 USD